Wordless Wednesday #82 - Dog Hiking Group Meetup

Photos by: Rebecca Richardson

Teaching Dogs Reliable Recall

Mr. N goes off-leash hiking on a regular basis and we've been working a lot on his recall the past year. I would say he's about 97-98 percent reliable at this point. I'm of the they are dogs and things happen and there is no 100 percent reliability school of thought. He never doesn't come back but from time to time, his terrier brain takes over and it takes him an extra minute or two to focus.

Mr. N checking to make sure I'm still following him

I was very proud of him recently when he was in full throttle and chasing a squirrel and came running back to me when I called him.

1. I don't "poison" his recall cue. I don't use it to call him for baths,  or anything else he might find unpleasant. Mr. N usually don't want off-leash hiking time to end so I'll usually tell him to wait so I can clip his leash rather than calling him to me. 
2. Only use your recall cue if you're at least 90 percent positive your dog will come to you. If you call them repeatedly when you're not sure they're going to come back, you're just decreasing the effectiveness of the cue and teaching them that they can blow you off. 
3. Recall means the really high value rewards come out. Steak. Cheese. Liver. Fur tugs. Life rewards (going to say hi to another dog, being given permission to chase the squirrel). It's an easy decision between chasing a squirrel and kibble. 
4. Recall games. I'll hide from Mr. N so he can't find me which reminds him that he needs to keep an eye on me at all times. You can all practice with a friend/group of people and take turns calling your dog and rewarding your dog. Mr. N will respond to Sage's recall cue too because he usually gets rewarded by Sage's human. 
5. Practice in low distraction environments first and build it up. Start first at home in a quiet environment and then gradually add distractions and different environments. Use a long line if necessary. 
6. We're always practicing recall. We work on it several times a week in a mixture of different settings. Home/public space/outdoors. I also reward Mr. N for checking in with me periodically. He does it naturally but I make sure to reinforce that behavior. 
7. Dogs are dogs and you never know if they're going to have a bad day or it's the one day they can't resist saying hi to that dog across the street. Pick your off-leash environments carefully both for the sake of your dog and the other dogs and humans around. Playing ball off-leash next to a truck route is a horrible idea no matter how well-trained your dog may be! I don't let Mr. N off-leash around busy roads, horses (if I know they're there) or places where there's a lot of foot traffic. 

What do you do to teach reliable recall? 

Mr. N with the hiking with dogs group

BW Sunday #87 - Too Warm

FitDog Friday #73 - Hiking Angel's Rest and Trail Snacks for Dogs

An acquaintance was deeply impressed by Mr. N's hiking prowess saying it's like he's hiking three times the distance with his stride.

Even though he's never tired, he does expend a lot of energy so he gets fed a lot of snacks on the trail. I look for healthy, meat-based, grain-free and portable treats. I tried out Primal Buffalo Liver Chunks Dry Roasted Dog Treats from Chewy.com when we were hiking Angel's Rest. 

Mr. N is a definite fan and they rank in his second tier of treats after cheese and meat that I cook for him (and yes, he is extremely picky!). 

I approve of the treats because they are made from US-sourced buffalo with no added salt and sugar or preservatives and they're a single ingredient treat. My only qualm is that they are not as easily breakable as I would like. They do break up but not into tiny, tiny pieces and some pieces are harder to break than others. 

I used them to call him away from chipmunks at the summit. He really wanted to go after them.

And to remind him that he shouldn't go jumping off cliffs.

And as a reward for climbing through the boulder field. 

We also saw a lot of wildflowers. 

And a waterfall. 

But Mr. N could care less. He says bring on the liver and the chipmunks. What do you take for your dogs to snack on the trail? 

Chewy.com provided us with the liver treats. Tenacious Little Terrier was not compensated for this review post. All opinions expressed are our own.

Wordless Wednesday #81 - All By Myself

Hiking Angel's Rest

Monday Mischief #65 - Mr. N's Mini-Me

Does anyone else think the bench dog is Mr. N's Mini-Me?

BW Sunday #86 - The world is one's headrest

FitDog Friday #72 - Hiking Mosier Plateau Trail

Wildflower season is upon us and when I read of this new trail that promised wildflowers, a waterfall

and a view, I knew I had to hike it. Despite the warnings about ticks from other hikers (Mr. N did make it out without any ticks but Sage wasn't as lucky). 

Sage and Mr. N went for a pre-hike at 1000 Acres with their new Dalmatian friend, Riley. Then after a quick lunch in Hood River, we headed to Mosier. It's easy to miss the trailhead (which we did), watch for the bench by the side of the road once you cross the bridge. 

We passed by an old cemetery with gravestones dating back to the 1800s. Then Mosier Creek Falls.  

Wildflowers were abundant especially heading towards the top. According to Portland Monthly, you can find 30 varieties of flowers including yellow balsamroots, lupines, purple bachelor buttons, and pink corydalis. 

The trail opened in 2013 and is rated as moderate, a 3.5 mile out and back trail. I didn't find it particularly steep or strenuous but there is very little shade so not the best trail for a hot day. Both dogs were panting a bit so we had frequent water breaks. 

Once we got to the top, the view was stunning. Yellow wildflowers dotted the landscape and you could see the world in miniature including the Columbia River and the town.

Mr. N says he prefers to hunt lizards than look at wildflowers. 

Mr. N seemed to appreciate the view too although I made sure I had a very tight grip on his leash.

Mr. N noticed four hawks circling above us. Unfortunately, my phone had died by that point so I didn't get any pictures but they were quite the sight. Even though I think they were angling to try to eat Mr. N. He does not appreciate predators trying to eat him. I suppose he does look like a fluffy bunny from that distance...

Wordless Wednesday #80 - Picture Perfect

Pageant Park in Bend, Ore.

Monday Mischief #64 - Snow and Desert

We haven't seen snow all winter despite a trip to the Midwest. During our trip to Bend, we made a quick stop in Government Camp. It's the closest town to several ski resorts. I think Mr. N forgot what snow was like.



Then two hours later, we reached Bend which is in a high desert region.

Mr. N was not quite what sure what to make of all the changes but he took it in stride. He's a pretty adaptable little dog.

How does your dog react to change?

BW Sunday #85 - His Own Size

Hiking in Bend, Ore.

No purchase necessary. Giveaway is open to US residents, 18 and over. Void where prohibited. Giveaway will run from Monday, April 6th, 2015 through Sunday, April 12th, 2015 at 11:59pm PT. One (1) winner will be randomly selected by PromoSimple.com and notified via email. Winner will have 48 hours to claim their prize; failure to do so will result in forfeiture of the prize. Participants must read and agree to Tenacious Little Terrier's and PromoSimple's Privacy Policy before entering and participating in this promotion. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Google+, KONG, Outward Hound, Zuke's, i-Click, Dogwise Publishing and Howln Moon Press do not sponsor, administer, or endorse this promotion. Prize pack will be shipped separately by participating bloggers who donated prize items.

River Bend Dog Park and Why Mr. N Hates Dog Parks for Small Dogs

We took Mr. N to the River Bend Dog Park in Bend on our last day there to let him run around before the car ride home. He was not impressed.

The park had a separate area for small dogs but there was no one else there. To go in there, the dogs have to be under 25 pounds and under 15 inches. They had a model dog to demonstrate. It's hard to tell from the angle but Mr. N is almost as tall as the model. Would be weird banning him though.

There were a few dogs in the bigger area but I was nervous about letting him go in there especially as Mr. N was attacked by a Border Collie the day before.

The big dog area with access to the river

So he stayed in the small dog area and roamed around aimlessly for a few minutes then headed towards the gate to insist that he was bored and wanted to leave immediately. The park was quite nice for an urban dog park but there was nothing for him to do.

He has disliked every small dog-specific dog park we've gone to. I can't really blame him. They're usually much, much smaller. Like a half-acre for the small dogs vs ten acres for the bigger ones. Often all the amenities are in the big dog area (benches, water, equipment etc).

When it comes to off-leash areas, a designated space for small dogs to have a play and activity level that's in their proportion rather than with big dogs can be a great option for small dog owners.

I appreciate that they build small dog areas because it can be unsafe for them to mingle with the bigger dogs. But just because they are small does not mean that their play and activity level are correspondingly small. Mr. N can hike for five hours and is still not tired after that. He has beaten Labs in a race for the ball (well the Labs wanted the ball, he just wanted to run). He has run with a field of Collies. 

A half-acre is nothing to him. No purchase necessary. Giveaway is open to US residents, 18 and over. Void where prohibited. Giveaway will run from Monday, April 6th, 2015 through Sunday, April 12th, 2015 at 11:59pm PT. One (1) winner will be randomly selected by PromoSimple.com and notified via email. Winner will have 48 hours to claim their prize; failure to do so will result in forfeiture of the prize. Participants must read and agree to Tenacious Little Terrier's and PromoSimple's Privacy Policy before entering and participating in this promotion. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Google+, KONG, Outward Hound, Zuke's, i-Click, Dogwise Publishing and Howln Moon Press do not sponsor, administer, or endorse this promotion. Prize pack will be shipped separately by participating bloggers who donated prize items.

Wordless Wednesday #79 - Hiking in Bend

No purchase necessary. Giveaway is open to US residents, 18 and over. Void where prohibited. Giveaway will run from Monday, April 6th, 2015 through Sunday, April 12th, 2015 at 11:59pm PT. One (1) winner will be randomly selected by PromoSimple.com and notified via email. Winner will have 48 hours to claim their prize; failure to do so will result in forfeiture of the prize. Participants must read and agree to Tenacious Little Terrier's and PromoSimple's Privacy Policy before entering and participating in this promotion. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Google+, KONG, Outward Hound, Zuke's, i-Click, Dogwise Publishing and Howln Moon Press do not sponsor, administer, or endorse this promotion. Prize pack will be shipped separately by participating bloggers who donated prize items. Prize pack may not be as pictured.

Positive Pet Training #14 - Teach Your Pet Something New in Ten Minutes

Mr. N is becoming quite adept at clicker training and he can learn a basic trick in a few minutes. We do a lot of structured shaping where I have a goal in mind and I try to "nudge" him towards the final product. We don't do a lot of free shaping where I just wait to see what Mr. N has to offer because he gets frustrated if he feels like he lacks directions.

So I thought I'd see what he came up with. Mr. N (being the diva he is) likes to stomp at me if he thinks I'm being unclear or if I'm not rewarding for something he thinks I should be. Sure enough, I sat there and he started to stomp at me and I clicked and treated and put it on cue. My hand signal is tapping the floor with my fist once. 

As you can see from the video, he caught on pretty quickly that he would be rewarded for "stomping." From start to finish, it took less than ten minutes complicated by the fact that I also had my phone out to take pictures and he was like do you want me to pose pretty for a picture or work? 

Shaping really makes dogs think and I love playing the "game" with dogs. I also worked with Mr. N's friend, Sage, shaping for two five-minute sessions and she was regularly offering a wave by the end of the ten minutes. And this is a dog who hasn't had much experience with clicker training and shaping. 

Ten minutes. That's really all you need. Your dog can learn a lot in those few minutes and it's better for them to have shorter, frequent sessions anyway.

Have you tried training your pet to do something new in ten minutes? 


To encourage you on your pet training journey, we're hosting a giveaway! Enter to win the Positive Reinforcement Training Week Prize Pack:

No purchase necessary. Giveaway is open to US residents, 18 and over. Void where prohibited. Giveaway will run from Monday, April 6th, 2015 through Sunday, April 12th, 2015 at 11:59pm PT. One (1) winner will be randomly selected by PromoSimple.com and notified via email. Winner will have 48 hours to claim their prize; failure to do so will result in forfeiture of the prize. Participants must read and agree to Tenacious Little Terrier's and PromoSimple's Privacy Policy before entering and participating in this promotion. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Google+, KONG, Outward Hound, Zuke's, i-Click, Dogwise Publishing and Howln Moon Press do not sponsor, administer, or endorse this promotion. Prize pack will be shipped separately by participating bloggers who donated prize items. Prize pack may not be as pictured.

Welcome to First Monday's Positive Pet Training Blog Hop hosted by Cascadian Nomads, Tenacious Little Terrier and Rubicon Days. Please share your responsible pet owner positive pet training tips by linking a blog post or leaving a comment below. Any positive reinforcement training posts or comments are also always welcome. The Positive Pet Training Blog Hop goes all week long. Our next hop will begin Monday, May 4th and continues for a week. The May theme is "reviews" where we invite you to share a review of a positive reinforcement training book, DVD, treat, tool, speaker, class, etc.

BW Sunday #84 - Mr. N and the Crux Brewery Bunny

At the Crux Fermentation Project in Bend, Ore.

Preparing for a Road Trip with a Dog

For my birthday, we're heading to Bend this weekend. We booked a dog-friendly room, Mr. N is freshly groomed and I've told him he needs to comport himself like a gentleman while we're there. 

This is Mr. N's you better not think of going anywhere without me face. By: One Lifetime Photography

He really needs his own suitcase at this point. I feel like he has almost as much stuff as I do. I typically bring:

• Food and lots of treats and a chew. I usually bring freeze-dried food because Mr. N refuses to eat kibble and dehydrated food, it takes him days to finish a can of food and raw is inconvenient unless you have a fridge. I've read about bringing your local water but so far Mr. N has been fine without it.

• Sleepypod soft carrier. 

• Vaccination records. I keep his rabies and license tag on my key chain. 

• Medications and supplements. 

• His water bowl and a collapsible bowl for food. 

• Plastic bags.

• Grooming supplies. A brush, wipes, water-less shampoo, and an old towel. I bring his toothbrush and toothpaste on longer trips. 

• His mat and some favorite toys.

• An extra leash/harness and a rain coat and fleeces. If we're going hiking, I normally pack two because inevitably one will get wet or dirty and he'll need to change. Just like traveling with a toddler! 
• I might bring a clicker and his odor kit so we can get some practice in. 

Is there anything I'm missing? Any recommendations for things to do there?